Thanks for the info.

Is there any way to adjust how much you have to move the inner paddle on a RS505 lever to change gear? The main lever doesn't need to be moved much but the inner paddle seems to give a lot less feedback and I have to move it quite a bit more so I was wondering if there was a way to tighten up the fe...

My new Arkose just arrived, just need to get home to assemble it.

The postman’s been by Paul Bravey, on Flickr

09/03/2018 74.9 (165.1)
16/03/2018 75 (165.3)

Negligible gain this week which considering how much 'fun' its been is fine.

I don't have one to recommend but I can't recommend the Bontrager one. It consists of two plastic pieces, a base and a reversible cage. After half a dozen trips the cage now falls off at the merest provocation because the screws have eaten away at the holes meaning the cage just shakes loose.

I got taken out by a large antlered deer on the way to work once - it ran straight through my front wheel and I flipped over it’s back and landed in the road. I ended up with a taco’d front wheel and a police report just in case I needed to claim on insurance. The strangest wildlife encounter though...

Ta all, that helps solidify my plan.

I get that it won’t cope with drops and rock gardens but if it can cope with Cannock blue trails, towpaths, country roads and the odd bridleway then it’ll cover most of my riding

At the risk of turning this thread into being all about the arkose, just how off-road capable is the Arkose with 45mm tyres? Considering getting one to replace my road bike since it covers 90% of the riding I do

I actually get to ride a bike in a non-commuting fashion this weekend which makes it a very cheery Friday.

02/03/2018 75.3 (166)
09/03/2018 74.9 (165.1)

A manic week this week but managed to cut out the snacks so hopefully will continue the trend.

My unusual job for the day was trying to sign up for self-assessment on the government website and ending up in endless loops. Sigh

They had them in On Your Bike in Digbeth the last time I went by, though that was a year ago.

I know that the Specialized Concept stores in Brum and Stafford do them, though not done it myself to know if they're any good.

I have family at either end of the south downs way so I'd head down to the south coast on the NCN, do the SDW, drop down to Southampton and then get a ferry over to spain and do the Camino.

16/02 75.3 (166.0)
23/02 74.9 (165.1)
02/03 75.3 (166.0)

The yo-yo continues.

Women's geometry bikes tend to assume shorter arms so tend to have a shorter top tube, not sure if there's many other differences.

I'm not much of a photographer but I liked this one:

Back garden Mushrooms by Paul Bravey, on Flickr

16/02 75.3 (166.0)
23/02 74.9 (165.1)

Managed to cut out the snacks, now just need to get some actual exercise.

We've not even got onto what bike should we use and most importantly what tyres?

The WRT is way out of my comfort zone but after reading last years reports I booked the bank holiday weekend off with the missus. To answer the titular question, yes, it’s mildly scary but that’s not a bad thing.

03/01 75.8 (167.1)
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12/01 75.6 (166.6)
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26/01 75.6 (166.6)
02/02 75.3 (166.0)
09/02 74.7 (164.6)
16/02 75.3 (166.0)

Another bad week with too many snacks at odd hours. I did get out for a 20k ride though so it wasn't a total loss.

Sumac works really well too.

Maybe ask them to stock up on tin foil so that you can take a spare with you. That said, it's probably not in the spirit of TLS if you lash a bacon sarnie to every tube

i’m somewhat surprised that Gnarpoon doesn’t fall foul of the swear filter